PAUL STANLEY Says RUSH Was 'Most Exciting' Opening Band KISS Has Ever Had

PAUL STANLEY Says RUSH Was 'Most Exciting' Opening Band KISS Has Ever Had

During a recent SiriusXM Town Hall, the members of KISS were asked to name some of the best bands that opened for them. Bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons said: “AC/DC on their first tour. A band that shares the same philosophy — no matter what any other band is doing, to thine own self be true.

“I’ve said it before, but it’s more true now than ever,” he continued. “A lot of people look the same and act the same and do the same thing — rap, country… there’s a lot of sameness going on. Every once in a while, you see a band like AC/DC — nobody’s like them. We like to think we’re unique in that way too. Unique — to have your own fingerprint, ’cause Mother Nature knows best. There’s no other fingerprint on earth like us, and bands should march to the beat of their own drummer.”

Added drummer Eric Singer: “I thought RUSH was the best. I saw RUSH open for KISS. I thought they were the coolest opening band. That was the ‘Fly By Night’ tour— early ’75. KISS had ‘Hotter Than Hell’ out and RUSH had just gotten Neil Peart and they had ‘Fly By Night’.”

Said guitarist/vocalist Paul Stanley: “I think for us, RUSH was most exciting. When we first had them playing with us in Canada and John Rutsey was still the drummer. The first album was so… It was HUMBLE PIE, it was [LED] ZEPPELIN. They obviously found their footing in something they wanted to do later on. They were always great. AC/DC with Bon [Scott], when we had them on tour. Great! [JUDAS] PRIEST — PRIEST were phenomenal. Bob Seger… We can go down the list. Bob Seger got his first gold album on tour with us. John Cougar Mellencamp… Tom Petty… The list goes on and on.”

A month ago, KISS announced its “End Of The Road” farewell tour on NBC‘s “America’s Got Talent”, and last week, the band revealed the first set of dates and cities in North America, produced by Live Nation. International markets were announced simultaneously.

The North American leg of “End Of The Road” will launch January 31 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada at Rogers Arena and will hit an additional 43 cities.